Oilman Jim's Letter - August 28, 2024

Helium One Global (HE1.L HLOGF HE1.F) announced that it has completed the first phase of the extended well test at Itumbula West-1 and flowed up to 7.6% helium to surface. The company is now in the process of undertaking the second extended well test in the fractured basement. Separately, HE1 announced that it has entered into a conditional binding heads of agreement pursuant to which the company has agreed to acquire a 50% legal and beneficial interest in the Blue Star Helium (BNL.ASX BSNLF) Galactica-Pegasus project in Colorado, as well as a similar interest in leases associated with 61,000 gross acres of acreage in Las Animas County. To fund the acquisition, the company also announced that it has raised gross proceeds of £6.43 million (approximately $8.2 million) by a direct subscription pursuant to a cash box structure, through the issue of 590,000,000 new ordinary shares at a price of 1.09 pence per share. The Galactica project contains confirmed discovery wells flowing an average of 3% helium as free gas, at which concentration the company estimates a resource estimate of 675 million cubic feet. An initial six development well programme is planned for Q4 2024 which is expected to be on stream and producing in H1 2025…more…more

Valeura Energy (VLE.TSX VLERF 83PN.F) announced the successful ramp-up of oil production at its Nong Yao C development in Licence G11/48 , offshore Gulf of Thailand. The greater Nong Yao complex is now operating at its full processing capacity, with stable average production over the past seven days of 13.4 thousand barrels of oil per day (12.1 thousand barrels of oil per day net to the company’s 90% working interest share, before royalties). This production when combined with the Wassana field (now back online) has resulted in stable aggregate oil production over the past week of 26.2 thousand barrels of oil per day (company’s working interest share, before royalties). Production at Nong Yao C is said to have been stable for the past week from six of the development wells.  A seventh well is expected to be started within the coming weeks, to create spare production capacity. The work programme for the remainder of the year entails drilling infill development wells at both the Jasmine and Manora fields to offset declines, and to bolster the company’s plan to maintain production at approximately 25 thousand barrels of oil per day for at least the next four months. Valeura is strongly cash generative and is currently evaluating options as to how best to deploy its net cash…more

Harbour Energy (HBR.L PMOIF PQQ0.F) announced that it now expects to complete the acquisition of the Wintershall Dea asset portfolio in early September, versus previous guidance of early in the fourth quarter. This follows considerable progress being made on satisfying the conditions to completion, including recent receipt of Mexico regulatory consents. The acquisition, which is said to be transformational, includes all of Wintershall Dea's upstream assets in Norway, Germany, Denmark, Argentina, Mexico, Egypt, Libya and Algeria, as well as Wintershall Dea's CO2 capture and storage licences in Europe. The acquisition will add 1.1 billion barrels of oil equivalent of 2P reserves at around $10/barrel of oil equivalent and more than 300,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day of production. Harbour hence becomes one of the world's largest and most geographically diverse independent oil and gas companies…more

Sunda Energy (SNDA.L) announced that it has submitted applications for two offshore licence areas in the Philippines which contain several material gas discoveries and significant upside potential. Sunda says it has been actively screening new business opportunities in Southeast Asia, which include a number of possible new ventures where significant interests in material gas assets with low costs of entry may be accessed. One of these initiatives has resulted in the licence round applications being made in the 1st Conventional Energy Bid Round of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao in the Philippines. These applications have been made in a joint venture partnership with three other companies and, if successful, Sunda expects to hold a 37.5% non-operated interest in any resulting service contracts that are awarded. Meanwhile, the company is focussed on its upcoming appraisal activities on the Chuditch field in Timor-Leste…more

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